11 new homes associated with notifications to convert vacant commercial premises in Leitrim since 2018

The Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage, Darragh O’Brien, TD, today published figures showing that since 2018 Leitrim County Council has received 11 notifications (of intention to build) from those planning to convert vacant commercial premises into homes.  

These figures relate to Regulations that provide those planning on converting certain commercial properties into homes with an exemption from requiring planning permission. The regulations are aimed at increasing housing supply and renewing towns and communities. Last year, Minister O’Brien amended the 2018 Regulations to include an exemption for the conversion of vacant pubs. He extended the Regulations to the end of 2025, as committed to under the Government’s ‘Housing for All’ plan and ‘Town Centre First’ policy.

In 2022, Leitrim County Council received notifications of six exempted developments aimed at providing seven homes. Nationally, 260 notifications indicated intent to provide 665 homes.

The figures have been published as the second phase of the department’s national ad campaign to raise awareness of the Government’s vacant property supports begins. The campaign’s second phase highlights these planning permission exemptions and the Repair and Leasing Scheme.

Over the next two weeks, the government is going to highlight both the planning permission exemptions for converting vacant commercial property into a home and the Repair and Leasing Scheme, which offers vacant property owners the opportunity to restore a property with the help of a local authority loan in return for guaranteed rent for a defined period of time by renting the property out for social housing.

Anyone interested in buying, selling or leasing a vacant property that could be a home to visit www.gov.ie/vacancy  or contact Leitrim County Council’s Vacant Homes Officer.